He rubbed his face and started toward the stairs. A creak above him caught his ear. What was that sound? Was someone awake?
His steps slowed as he approached the end of the hallway. Just as he rounded the corner, someone dressed in black darted away from the stairway and toward the screen door.
“Stop!” Nick started after the man, adrenaline pulsing through him.
The man slipped outside quicker than a snake. Nick was right behind him. He reached out to grab the man, his fingers only inches away. Until the man grabbed a plastic trash can and threw it in Nick’s path. Nick tumbled a moment before righting himself. It was too late. The intruder had already reached the tree line and started into the woods.
Nick didn’t let up. He followed the man into the night. His dress shoes did nothing for the traction on the forest floor. The leaves underfoot made him slip, grab hold of tree branches to maintain his balance. In the meantime, the intruder inched farther away. Eventually, the man blended into the distance.
Nick stopped, his heart racing, his breathing heavy. All was quiet.
Where had the man gone? He was wearing all black, so he could disappear into the night. Was the man hiding? Or was he still running?
Nick leaned with his palms against his knees, trying to catch his breath while listening for any telltale sounds.
Nothing.
What had that been about? Had the intruder taken something from the camp? What would he have taken? The camp had nothing of value.
Nick needed to search his office and see if anything had been disturbed.
He scanned the area around him once more. All was still. With a final shake of his head, he straightened and began his walk back to the cafeteria. His legs burned on the walk and he realized that he’d come farther than he thought. His body seemed to scream for rest.
Finally, he emerged from the woods. He spotted the cafeteria ahead, lights now blazing from each window. He stepped inside and spotted Molly and Cody standing at the stairway.
Molly stepped toward him, a sweatshirt pulled on over jeans and a T-shirt. “Is everything okay? We heard yelling.”
“Someone was in the cafeteria. I chased him but he got away.”
Molly sucked in a breath. “In here? In this building while we slept?”
“I caught him coming down the stairs.”
Molly shivered. “Creepy.”
He flicked his eyes up. “Yeah, to say the least.”
Cody lowered himself with a thud onto the stairs, obviously still sleepy. “What would someone want from the camp? It’s not like we keep money or have anything else of value here.”
“Good question. I have no idea. But we have to remember that things have been going missing around here lately. Cody, you said yourself that you felt like someone had gone through your things. And Molly, there was that missing bottle of medicine. Maybe someone from the outside did break in.”
Molly sat at one of the tables. “So what now?”
“Now I’m going to go upstairs and see if I see anything missing.”
“Are you going to call the sheriff?”
“Why? They won’t find any evidence that someone was here. Every trail has been a dead end.”
Nick blanched at his words. Dead end. The words had a whole new meaning to him now. He would protect this camp with his life if he had to, though.
* * *
Two hours later, Molly, Nick and Cody had searched all of the rooms upstairs to no avail. Why had someone been up there? Molly wondered. What were they searching for?
She shivered. The intruder had been in the building with her and she’d had no clue.
She pushed a box of files back into a spare closet in an upstairs office and sat on the dusty floor with a thump. She wiped some stray hairs out of her eyes with the back of her hand and leaned against the wood-paneled wall behind her. The air-conditioning hadn’t been turned on in this room, and the air felt heavy with summer humidity.
Nick poked his head in the room, exhaustion showing around his eyes and in his heavy movements. “Anything?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
He lowered himself beside her on the floor and handed her a bottle of water. “It’s hot up here. Drink up.”
She took the bottle and downed a long sip of water, more dehydrated than she thought. “Thanks.” She turned her head toward him. They hadn’t had a chance to chat since he returned to the camp, and she was anxious to talk.
“Nick, I found a note that fell from your father’s hands when he had the heart attack.”
“A note?”
Molly nodded. “It said ‘Death awaits.’”
His face reddened. “Someone left a note for my father that said that? Is that why he had a heart attack?”
Molly shrugged and softened her voice. “Stress can cause our bodies to respond in certain ways...”
He shook his head. “I just don’t get it.”
“We’ll need to talk to your father to see where he got the note. How’s he doing, by the way?”
“He’s better...thanks to you.” His voice sounded soft, sincere.
“I’m glad. That was quite a scare.”
“Tell me about it. My dad’s always been the strong one. Seeing him like that...” Nick shook his head before letting it rest against the wall and closing his eyes. “It’s enough to throw anyone off balance, you know? You never think it’s going to be someone you love who’s hit with something like that.”
“No, you never do.”
Nick turned toward her. “I really do owe you a world of thanks.”
“It was nothing, Nick. I’m happy I could help.” She searched his gaze a moment. “How are you doing?”
He shrugged. “I’m okay.”
She put her hand on his knee, wanting to make sure he paid attention. “No, really. I want to hear how you’re doing.”
He paused a moment, his eyes flickering in thought. “I’m exhausted.”
“You look tired.”
He turned toward her, his eyes churning with emotions. Was he going to kiss her? Just as suddenly as the thought fluttered through Molly’s mind, Nick sprang to his feet. “I need to take a walk.”
“Now? At 3:00 a.m.? And with everything that’s been going on around here?”
“Yeah, I just need to clear my head. Besides, I don’t think whoever’s behind everything will be back tonight. They’ve already done their dastardly deed.”
She didn’t want to go near the woods, especially not at this hour and after all that had happened lately. But her need to be with Nick outweighed that. “Need company?”
A bit of a spark returned to his gaze. “Are you offering?”
“Yeah, I am.”
He reached for hand. “Then, yes, I need company.”
Molly noticed that he didn’t let go of her hand, but instead kept a firm grip on it as they went down the stairs. When they stepped outside and were embraced by the nighttime air, Molly shivered—not from the temperature, but from Nick’s touch and from the events of the past few weeks. She couldn’t get everything that had gone on recently out of her mind and waited tensely to hear the sound of a chainsaw in the background. But there was nothing but some crickets and gentle thunder.
They walked silently along the camp’s paved loop. Molly remained quiet, sensing the need for Nick to gather his thoughts. Finally, he stopped in front of a grove of evergreen trees that lit the whole area with the fresh scent o
f pine. This was the place where Nick always liked to escape to gather his thoughts. He’d been like that, even as a camper.
He pulled her beneath the spindly trees and faced her, tight lines pulling at the edges of his face. “I need to tell you something, Molly.”
She sucked in a breath and tried to prepare herself for whatever he had to say. Her throat felt dry as she mumbled, “Okay.”
He looked to the distance a moment as if gathering his thoughts before his gaze rested on her. “I’ve been doing a lot of self-evaluation lately. It’s part of the reason I decided to get out of the military when I had the chance. I knew I was on a path that was leading me places I didn’t want go, and I was afraid if I continued on it, there would be no return.”
He paused a moment, his gaze heavy and burdened. “I realized that as a chaplain I’ve always been there for other people. I’ve set my own needs aside in order to comfort others. I’ve set my own problems aside in order to give people a listening ear. I’ve set aside my opinions and feelings in order to be objective. I didn’t mind doing those things. I mean, it’s what I signed up for. It comes with the territory. In the process, I came to the realization that no one wanted to hear my problems or worries.”
Her heart lurched as his revelation. “Nick, I—”
He squeezed her arm to shush her. “Let me finish. Please, let me get this out before I change my mind.” His serious gaze locked on her. “Molly, you’re one of the only people I’ve ever felt has really cared about me. You’ve listened to me and cared about me when no one else did. You’ve always pushed me to be real, to stop guarding my heart for long enough to let you in. I feel like you’re one of the only people who can really see me... And at times I’m terrified at what that means. There are parts of me I don’t want anyone to see.”
“Like what?”
He shrugged. “My weaknesses. My doubt. My struggles. Living life in a fishbowl has ingrained in me that I need to be perfect.”
“No one’s perfect. If they were, Christ wouldn’t have needed to die for us. And I’m honored that you think I can see you for who you are because I do care about you, Nick.”
He shook his head. “You don’t understand. You’ve always cared about me and, as a result, what did I do? I hurt you. I broke up with you. I let my parents speak ill of you.” He paused, staring at her. A stray drop of rain splattered Molly’s arm as she waited for him to finish. “I don’t deserve you, Molly.”
His words did something strange to Molly’s heart. It welled with relief, joy, closure...wariness. “It’s funny because all of these years I thought that you didn’t think I was good enough for you.”
He grasped the sides of her arms. “Never. Never. Do you hear me?”
Raindrops began pouring through the branches above them and hitting them like a spray of bullets. Nick grabbed her hand and pulled her several feet until they were underneath the safety of a nearby picnic shelter. The storm intensified around them. Rain battered the tin roof above them. Thunder rumbled. Lightning lit the sky.
All of Molly’s senses suddenly felt alive, alert, and it had nothing to do with the storm.
She swallowed her emotions a moment. “I know you called a friend at the hospital, Nick, to report that I was here.”
Nick’s eyes widened. “To report that you were here? I never did that, Molly. Where did you get that idea?”
“Derek. He said that’s how he found out I was here.”
“I called to do a background check and that’s it.” He softened his voice. “That’s what all that talk about trust came from. You thought I’d turned you in? I do background checks on everyone who works here, whether paid or volunteer. It’s just part of our policy.”
She shook her head, suddenly feeling foolish. “I should never believe anything that Derek tells me. I don’t know when I’ll realize that.”
Nick folded her into his arms. “I’m sorry, Molly. For everything. Everything.”
“Yeah, me too.” She was amazed at how safe she felt wrapped in Nick’s arms with her head snugly under his chin. Few people had ever made her feel so secure and cared about. She didn’t want the moment—or the feeling—to end. But doubt began to nudge its way back in. Nick had left her. Abandoned her. One moment she’d been safe and secure with him; the next he’d broken her heart. He could do it again. She could be played for the fool...again.
“Molly?”
She pulled back and looked up at him, her heart quickening again. Hope and doubt collided inside her. “Yes?”
“Do you realize where we are?”
He’d remembered. “This is the spot where we first kissed.”
“Molly?”
“Yes?”
Nick’s lips came down on hers, soft and sweet and full of promise. For just a moment, Molly hardly noticed the storm raging around them. Everything seemed to disappear.
He pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. “I want to give us another chance, Molly. This time, I won’t screw things up.”
Fear crashed through her mind. Would he leave again? Could he really be trusted with her heart? She wanted to say yes, but she still wasn’t sure. And she had something to prove to herself. Running back to Nick now would only show her weakness.
She took a step back. “I can’t do this. I just can’t do this.”
Before he could convince her otherwise, she ran back to the cafeteria.
* * *
What had just happened? Nick had thought he’d been reading the signals right. For a moment, he’d felt ready to give up his doubts and open his heart and take the plunge into a relationship. He’d thought Molly was ready, too. But maybe she’d seen something in him that he couldn’t. Maybe she’d seen beyond his walls and realized she didn’t like what was there.
He shook his head and took off after her. Sure, she probably needed space. But with everything going on at the camp, she also needed someone to watch her back. He’d been a fool to think they could start up again where they’d left off. He’d ruined his chances, and he had to accept that.
He walked into the staff quarters, ready to retreat to his bedroom and sulk over bad choices. He stopped in his tracks when he saw Molly standing in the hallway, her hands on her hips as she stared down the darkened corridor. “Can we talk about what just happened, Molly?”
Molly pointed in the distance, ignoring his request. “Why is Cody’s door open?”
His heart still ached at her rejection, but the way she stood affirmed that something wasn’t right. He had to put aside his feelings for a moment. He stepped toward the darkened room, alarms going off in his head. Cody valued his privacy and always made jokes about locking his door, even if he was only running down the hall to grab something and coming back. “That is strange. Cody?”
No answer.
He glanced at Molly, his heart even more guarded then ever. “Where would Cody be at this time of night?”
Molly shrugged. “Nowhere. He loves to sleep too much.”
“Cody?”
Still no answer.
“His car is still out front,” Molly said, pointing out the window.
“I have a bad feeling,” Nick muttered. “I’m going to go check out his room.”
Nick felt Molly step into the room behind him. Though the room looked like a typical college male’s room, with an overflowing basket of laundry and a huge stash of junk food on the dresser.
She pointed to the old dresser in the corner. “Look, there’s his w
allet. He wouldn’t have gone anywhere without it.”
She was right. Cody had even bought a waterproof wallet so he could keep it with him at the pool. “I don’t like this.”
“Neither do I.” Molly reached for a bottle atop the dresser. She read the label and suppressed a gasp. “Nick, this is one of the missing bottles of medicine.”
Nick took the bottle from her and scanned the label. “Why would Cody have it?”
Molly’s wide eyes focused on Nick. “Was Cody the one who stole the medicine? That just doesn’t seem like Cody.”
“But if he didn’t steal them, how did they end up on his dresser?”
Molly held the bottle up to the light. “The pills are missing from inside it.” She shook the bottle. “It looks like a piece of paper is in this one.”
“Let’s open it and see what it is.”
With shaky fingers, she pulled the paper out, unfolded it and smoothed the crinkles. Nick stood behind her, anxious to see what the paper said. The words came into focus.
Shut down the camp or Cody will die.
SIXTEEN
The next morning, a crowd gathered at the camp to do an extensive search of the camp’s land. If Cody was here, they would find him. They had to. Nick wouldn’t be able to live with himself if they didn’t.
Nick saw the sheriff in the distance, talking to a group of people, and approached him, ready to find out their next move. Sheriff Spruill cut his conversation short and pulled Nick aside. “Nick, we did a flyover this morning in one of the crop dusters. I thought you would want to know that there are two other places on the camp’s property where there are trees missing.”
“Two other places? What sense does that make?”
“A friend with the forestry extension office also paid a visit to the camp this morning. He checked out that first batch of trees that had been cut down. I think I know what’s going on here.”
“What’s that? Don’t keep me in suspense.” Molly approached them, turning Nick’s thoughts momentarily away from the conversation as her fruity scent drifted toward him.
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